Nasr thinks Wolff is 'prepared' for F1 debut

Felipe Nasr believes Susie Wolff has undergone the necessary preparations she needs to make her F1 race debut should it arise.

Felipe Nasr believes Susie Wolff has enough preparation behind her to get a shot at an F1 race drive having been overlooked as Williams' official reserve driver.

Nasr joined Williams in a testing role alongside Wolff for the 2014 season, but with the Brazilian switching to Sauber for an F1 race drive in 2015, Wolff was officially promoted to its role as test driver in his place, albeit with no obvious mention of a reserve role.

This omission became apparent at the opening round in Australia when Valtteri Bottas injured his back, putting him in doubt to compete in Malaysia. With attention turning to whether Wolff would subsequently get a call up, though Bottas was eventually given the all-clear to drive, Williams proceeded to sign Force India and Sauber F1 driver Adrian Sutil in a reserve role.

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Asked by Crash.net whether he was surprised Williams didn't put faith in Wolff, former team-mate Nasr believes she had the necessary preparation to race, but admits the team may not have felt the same way.

"It's a difficult one," he said. "I think she had enough preparation, she was doing simulator work. Maybe she didn't have enough time in the car and they didn't feel as though she was ready."

Wolff's 2015 deal will see her get two FP1 outings in 2015, as well as two test session runs, though it is Sutil that will be called upon to drive in a race should Felipe Massa or Bottas be unable to do so. GP3 Series champion Alex Lynn, meanwhile, currently holds a development role alongside his GP2 commitments.